3 days ago

3 days ago

3 days ago

Around The Blogosphere: December 19, 2010

If you are interested in participating in our ATB2 feature, send in your submissions to rushthecourt@gmail.com.

Top 25 Games

#2 Ohio State 79, South Carolina 57: “Ohio State once again rode a dominating effort from Jared Sullinger, easily dispatching the cold shooting South Carolina Gamecocks 79-57 this afternoon in Value City Arena. In front of a regional CBS audience, Sullinger blew up for 30 points and 19 rebounds in 30 minutes of action erasing any doubts as to exactly who is the best freshman in the country.” (Eleven Warriors)

#3 Kansas 70, USC 68: “Winners on the day for Kansas are quite obviously Josh Selby, along with Thomas Robinson, rebounding, the first half defensive effort and surviving. Losers? The Kansas offense, taking care of the basketball, free throw shooting and the ability to put away an opponent.” (Rock Chalk Talk)

Charlotte 49, #4 Tennessee 48: “Fans of offensive basketball would have cringed at times during this game, it was all defense from both teams for most of the game. Charlotte controlled the tempo of this game, keeping the score low and the legs fresh, and in the last 2:30 minutes, one defense folded and one held serve.” (Green Tinted Glasses)

Florida 57, #5 Kansas State 44: “Despite all the struggles early in the year, this team has always brought it and played well against good teams, Duke excepted. Tonight was a different story. Once the momentum turned against K-State, the team couldn’t find an answer. It doesn’t get any easier, as the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels will be waiting in Kansas City next Tuesday at Sprint Center.” (Bring on the Cats)

Gonzaga 68, #7 Baylor 64: “I just sent out about 30 text messages with the same words: “How did that just happen!?!” What a game. What a frustratingly, close your eyes, yell, scream, cheer, ridiculous game.” (The Slipper Still Fits)

#12 Georgetown 99, Loyola (MD) 75: “The last tuneup of the year couldn’t have been any better for the Georgetown Hoyas. After a week-long layoff while the players were taking finals and being college students, Georgetown came out and destroyed Loyola (MD) 99 – 75.” (Casual Hoya)

UCLA 86, #16 BYU 79: “One year after an ugly and embarrassing performance in front of Coach, the Bruins redeemed themselves and picked up a much needed victory against the #16 ranked and previously unbeaten BYU Cougars 86-79 in the John R. Wooden Classic (box score). With the win, UCLA notches its first “good” win of the year, and brings the Pac 10 conference a much needed victory.” (Bruins Nation)

#17 Purdue 65, Indiana State 52: “If you watched it, you saw what I saw- a team that looked rusty and uninspired at times versus a team that really wanted to win, but just didn’t have the firepower to do so.” (Boiled Sports)

#18 Kentucky 85, Mississippi Valley State 60: “This was one of those games. Most teams, like our orange and white neighbor to the south or red and black neighbor to the west, say that through gritted teeth and a frozen grimace. But not this Kentucky team. “One of those games” means the same thing this year as it did last year. Against notably inferior opponents, Kentucky has off games just like everyone else. The difference is, off games are a matter of degree, not result.” (A Sea of Blue)

Other Games of Interest

Michigan 69, Oakland 51: “This was supposed to be one of Michigan’s toughest games of the season to date and the Wolverines passed it with flying colors. Michigan’s defense held Oakland – a team that has already faced West Virginia, Purdue, Illinois, Michigan State, and Tennessee – to their worst offensive output of the season. I’ve been hesitant to believe that Michigan’s defense is the real deal, because making bad teams look terrible only goes so far, but right now there’s no denying that Michigan is playing great defense.” (UM Hoops: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3)

Texas 78, UNC 76: “The young Texas Longhorns (9-2) notched a season building win, with a 78-76 thriller in Greensboro over North Carolina. This afternoon’s victory plus the neutral site win over Illinois in New York City gives Rick Barnes and the ‘Horns two big notches in their belt and it’s not even January. A Wednesday tilt in East Lansing with Michigan State will be yet another opportunity to strengthen the resume.” (Burnt Orange Nation and Carolina March)